Ambulatory cot sheet protector



July 8, 1958 R. c. CROWN ET AL 2,841,801

AMBULATORY COT SHEET PROTECTOR Filed Aug. 25, 1955 United States Patent-O AMBULATORY COT SHEET PROTECTOR Richard C, Crown and John K. Watkins, Sylvania, Ohio Application August 25 1955, Serial N 0. 530,554

1 Claim. (Cl. -92) This invention relates to cots, more particularly of the type used in ambulances for the transportation of ill or injured patients.

An object of this invention is to provide a protective sheet for the normal bedding used on such type of cots to protect the bedding against stains.

Another object of this invention is to provide an attachment which may be placed on the frame of the cot, including a roll of liquid impervious sheeting which may be manually drawn over the bedding on the cot to protect the same.

Another object of this invention is to provide means,

whereby the protective sheeting may be rerolled for subsequent use.

'And another object of this invention is to provide a roll of protective sheeting which in itself is protected when the cot is in collapsed or non-use condition, but which may quickly be made available and unrolled over the bedding with a minimum of delay.

Other objects and advantages of this invention relating to the arrangement, operation and functions of the related elements of the structure, to various details of construction, to combination of parts and to economics of manufacture, will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the lower or foot end of an ambulatory cot showing a form of the invention attached thereto;

Fig. 2 is a view on the line II-I=I, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the protective shield unit which may be readily attached or detached from a cot; and

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of an ambultatory cot showing the invention herein in non-use position.

In the use of cots in ambulances which are used to transport ill or accident patients, it is a customary necessity that the bedding thereon be completely clean and preferably of white materials, when a patient is to be placed thereon. Heretofore, this meant that the bedding included a white cover sheet, which should be spotless at the time of use. However, it is a proven fact that when a patient is placed upon such a sheet, especially the victim of an accident, blood or other excretions from the patient quickly stains the sheet and renders it unfit for further use until the sheet has been laundered or otherwise completely cleaned. The laundering of such a sheet is in itself a matter of considerable expense, and if the sheet cannot be immediately laundered following the transportation of a victim, such sheet becomes at total loss and must be replaced by a new sheet or similar covering for the bedding on the cot. The invention herein provides a readily available protective shield for the sheet and other bedding on the cot, which, when an am- 2,841,801 Patented July 8, 1958 2 bulance arrives at the scene of an accident. or location to receive a patient, the protective shield maybe drawn over the bedding without delay, time being in most cases a vital factor;

To this end .there is herein shown a typical typearnbulatory cot, including a frame 10' mounted on casters 12. This frame 10 is usually of rectangular form having a head portion 14 and a foot portion 16. Additional frame work 18 may be included to provide an adjustable headrest. Guards 20 may be provided intermediate the head and foot of the frame, and the foot portion thereof may mount hinges 22 in turn mounting a foot board 24, which maybe folded over the bedding 26 when the cot is not in use. Upon arrival at a place of use the head portion 18 of the cot may be adjusted to meet theneeds of the then current emergency, and the foot board 24 may be folded outwardly from the bedding. A bracket 27 may be attached to the foot board to limit its swing relatively to the frame portion 16. Normally the bedding on such and has its foot portion terminating short of the frame portion 16, thereby providing a space region 28 between the bedding and the hinge mechanism 22. This space is utilized by the invention herein as hereinafter more fully described.

The hinged mechanism 22 is usually attached to the foot board 24 by means of screws 29 or other suitable fastening elements. These screws may be removed, and both a U-shaped bracket 3% and the hinges 22 attached to the foot board thereby. This bracket comprises a central portion 32 having suitable slots 34 to accommodate the fastening elements 29. The opposing ends of the bracket portion 32. are bent outwardly to provide a pair of lateral spaced arms 36. These arms 36 serve as bearings for a roller 38 extending between the arms 36 and mounted thereby. This arrangement places the bracket 3% on the foot board 24 adjacent the hinges 22. The roller 38 carries a liquid impervious plastic sheet 40 wound thereon. When the foot board 24 is folded over the bedding 26, the roll of sheeting 40 is disposed in the space 28 to be protected against unwinding, undue dirt or other contaminations.

Upon arrival at the location of the patient to be transported, the foot board 24 is quickly swung clear of the bedding 26, and the roll 40 is thereby brought into accessible position adjacent the lower edge of the foot portion of the bedding 26. An attendant may seize: the end of the roll 40 and manually draw this protective shield longitudinally over the bedding 26. If the injuries are limited to the lower extremity of a person, it is only necessary to draw this protective shield a limited distance over the bedding. However, if there are head injuries or upper body injuries, the shield may be completely drawn over the bedding.

The shield 40 is provided with a pair of integral side flaps 44, which may be unfolded to hang over the outer edges of the bedding, so that not only the top thereof is protected, but also the sides. When the patient has been discharged, the attendant may manually manipulate a knob 46 mounted on either end of the roller 38, and rewind the plastic sheet back onto the roller 38 for subsequent reuse. Before the rewinding operation is accomplished, the plastic sheet, due to the nature of its material, may be easily cleaned by a mere sponging or wiping operation, as the type of material used, being impervious to liquids, is not permanently stained.

The roller 38 may be mounted in the bracket 30 in the manner of a shade roller, but this is not deemed of material importance, due to the fact the roller 38 should be completely free so that the attendant may quickly unwind the plastic shield to protect the bedding, and when the shield is rewound time is not of such importance.

The use of the protective shield not only saves the bedding as well as the top sheet thereof, but in many cases permits the reuse of the same bedding without replacing. The bedding is not only protected from blood stains or other excretions, but also from grease and dirt which may be on the shoes or clothing of a victim.

'It is to be understood that the above description of the present invention is intended to disclose an embodiment thereof to those skilled in mean, but that the invention is not to be construed as limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts il-lustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of being practiced and carried out in various provide a spaced region between said bedding and said board adjacent the hinge attachment, said attachment including fastening means for the foot board thereto, a U-shaped bracket having its central portion engaged by said fastening means to mount said bracket to said board in the spaced region when said board is folded over said bedding and above said region when said board is extending outwardly therefrom, said bracket having its terminal legs outwardly extending from its central portion to provide a pair of spaced bearings laterally positioned with respect to said board, a roller freely mounted by and between said bearings, a strip of sheet material wound on said roller and manually withdrawable therefrom to extend over said bedding to provide a shield therefor, and means on said roller to manually rewind said sheet thereon, said roller and wound sheet material disposable Within the said space between the bedding and foot hoard hinge attachment when said foot board is folded over said bedding.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 156,772 Collins Nov. 10, 1874 712,203 Pellettieri Oct. 28, 1902 738,674 Grattan Sept. 8, 1903 942,606 Wilson Dec. 7, 1909 1,877,610 Steiner Sept. 13,1932 1,939,568 P anhorst Dec. 12, 1933 1,967,422 Nadelson July 24, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS 300,072 Great Britain Nov. 8, 1928 

